The Miami Dolphins have predictably leaned on their extremely young group of pass catchers so far this season, especially when Caleb Douglas has been on the field. Despite only playing in four games, Douglas is third on the team with 13 receptions. Chris Bell is right behind him at 12, with veterans Malik Washington and Greg Dulcich leading the way with 31 and 22 catches, respectively.
None of those players led the team in receiving yards against the New England Patriots last week, though.
Fifth-round rookie Kevin Coleman Jr. put up 46 yards on three receptions, including scoring his second career touchdown on a 35-yard bomb from Malik Willis. Even with that solid outing, however, Coleman has just eight receptions on 21 targets for 82 yards. Despite the lack of success when he has been targeted this season, I think it's for reasons that are less about him and more about how the offense has chosen to use him.
Kevin Coleman Jr. has more to offer the Miami Dolphins offense than he has shown this season
Part of the reason for Coleman's lack of efficiency has been the way he has been deployed in the offense thus far. At the college level, Coleman lined up in the slot on a whopping 91.8% of his snaps, according to Pro Football Focus. His average depth of target was 9.5 yards as well, pretty typical for a slot receiver.
So far this season with Miami, however, he has only played in the slot on 37.7% of his snaps, and his ADOT is a staggering 14.7. Among all receivers with at least 21 targets, that 14.7 mark ranks 15th. While he has shown flashes when being used this way, he did the majority of his damage in college as an underneath weapon who can use his speed and quickness to rack up yards after the catch.
Washington's emergence as the Dolphins' top receiver certainly plays a role, but even he has only been in the slot 53.6% of the time this season. The real culprit for why Coleman (and the rest of the Dolphins' receivers aside from Washington) have had to play outside so often is their personnel decisions.
Miami ranks 17th in 11 personnel (three wide receivers) usage this season, according to Sumer Sports, meaning they aren't utilizing a true slot position as often as many other teams. Instead of doing what most offenses are doing and leaning into 12 and 13 personnel (two or three tight ends), they are following the San Francisco 49ers' lead by using a fullback.
The Dolphins have used 21 personnel (two backs, often a true running back and the aforementioned fullback) on 27.9% of their plays, second only to the 49ers. That has limited their ability to utilize all of their young receivers properly, and Coleman has been the one who has suffered most from it, in my opinion.
Whether it means moving away from using so much 21 personnel or simply getting him more involved in the short and intermediate passing game, I think the offense would be improved by utilizing Coleman in a way that better utilizes his skill set. I will be curious to see if offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik agrees as the season moves along.
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